8 December 2016

One of my favourite brands, Makeup Geek have finally released their line of highlighters a few months ago. I was super excited to try them out and ended up purchasing their "Porcelain" and "Fair" highlighter bundles, consisting of 3 shades per bundle, and then an extra duochrome highlighter in "Electrify".

The highlighters come in a square gunmetal compact and although very prone to fingerprints, they are nicely weighted and very durable. Each compact is also accompanied with a nicely sized mirror.

There are currently 13 shades, each retailing for $20USD. 7 of the them are available in their "signature" shades and the remaining 6 highlighters have a duochrome finish. Makeup Geek do offer their highlighters in bundles of 3 to purchase. Each bundle are categorized by skin tones, "Porcelain", "Fair', "Medium" and "Deep" and are priced at $48USD per bundle which is a fantastic deal.

The "Fair" bundle consists of the shades, Luster (Rosy tan with a reflective and luminous finish), Midnight Sun (Soft champagne with a reflective, luminous finish) and Lit (Translucent base with peachy-pink duochrome reflects and luminous finish). I also purchased an extra highlighter in the shade Electrify which is described as a butter yellow duochrome reflects and luminous finish.

"Fair" highlighter bundle - Lit, Midnight Sun, Luster

Electrify highlighter

L-R: Lit, Midnight Sun, Luster, Electrify

Makeup Geek did not disappointed me with their highlighters. They are all extremely buttery and provide such as gorgeous lit from within look when applied. On first impression when looking at the pan, some shades look too dark to be highlighters but when swatched and applied they transform into such wearable shades. They can all be applied with a light hand for a natural glowy look or layered on for more of an intense highlight. I also love using them on my eyes, either as a lid shade or on the inner corners.

1 December 2016

WOW! Has it been a long time or what!? I took quite a lengthy hiatus from blogging but I'm back, hopefully. To be honest, I was feeling pretty uninspired and unmotivated to blog and wanted to focus more on my instagram (www.instagram.com/lauralauraah). Now that we're approaching a new year, one of my resolutions is to get back into blogging!

Let's get into the photos, reviews and swatches of the Huda Beauty Textured Shadows palette!

Huda is one of the biggest beauty bloggers on instagram and I've been following her for a few years now. She started her makeup line with her false lashes first then dabbled into her lip contours and liquid matte lipsticks. Her latest addition is her first eyeshadow palette, released around September 2016.

Now of course, I was sucked in to all the hype surrounding the palette and had to grab it for myself. She first released it on her official website but goddamn! The international shipping costs to Australia put me off completely. Luckily, Cult Beauty started stocking them and now Sephora Australia as well.

So this palette contains 18 shades. Looks absolutely stunning as you can see. 6 of the shades are described as their "3D Metal" eyeshadows in Dubai, Fling, 24K, Rose Gold, Trust Fund and #Blessed. 2 of the shades are their "Chromatic pressed pearls" eyeshadows- Angelic and Moon Dust. Lastly, are their "Saturated matte" eyeshadows.

First impressions of this palette upon opening my package was pure joy and love for the shade selection. The "3D Metal" eyeshadows were calling my name. I love the look of a highly pigmented foiled eyeshadow and couldn't wait to swatch them.

If you saw my first impression swatches on my instagram story, it was not great and did not reach my expectations at all. The eyeshadows looked patchy, chunky and dry, especially 24K, Rose Gold, Trust Fund and some of their matte eyeshadows.

Although, since then I've had more time to play around with this palette and with the "3D Metal" shadows, I've learned that you need to firmly press on the eyeshadow (it was almost as if the shadows had a "film" that prevented me from getting full colour pay off) and swirl your finger around the shadow for a few seconds to create a bit of warmth before applying the shade with your finger. Overall, fantastic shade selection, has great potential to be absolutely wonderful but just fell beneath my expectations.

Their "Chromatic pressed pearls" eyeshadows in Angelic and Moon Dust are a completely different story. Both of these shadows are extremely smooth and pigmented. Moon Dust is such a perfect highlight shade too! Definitely had to put in less work with these shadows compared to their "3D Metal" ones.

Now to their matte shadows. I think the shade selection is great with the palette having a mixture of warm and cool tones. They are not the best matte shadows though. I find them to be quite dry, chalky and some are patchy which you can see in a few of the swatches below. Although patchy, once you apply these shadows on the lids and use a good blending brush, this flaw is pretty much unnoticeable.

This palette retails for $95AUD on Sephora Australia, comparable to the price on Cult Beauty. Overall, an average palette with so much more potential, applies better on the lids than swatched on the arm but personally, I don't think this palette is worth the price tag. I'm hoping she will reformulate her shadows for future palettes.

10 July 2015

I'm a neutral kinda gal when it comes to the makeup I wear. I often like to stay in my comfort zone consisting of warm earthy browns and bronzes on my eyes and a dusty mauve/nude beige on the lips. When I do break out of that comfort zone though, which is unfortunately not often enough, I love adding some glam to my look with a statement red lipstick.

I was lucky enough to pick out a few lipsticks from Luxola and decided to go with some delectable reds to show you guys how I personally like to wear a red lip. I absolutely love pairing a bold red with a neutral eye, thick winged liner and adding a pair of luscious wispy falsies. Of course, there are really no rules in makeup and if you prefer pairing your red lippy with a sultry smokey eye then go for it. That's the beauty in makeup. Be creative, be you. There are no boundaries! Do whatever makes you feel good!

How intense and stunning are the swatches above! I was squealing from happiness when I was swatching these lipsticks, especially Zoeva's lipstick in 'Cooling Passion' and Sleek Makeup's 'O.M.G!'. Girllll, they are sooo rich in pigment and sooo creamy!

Luscious Cosmetics Signature Lipstick 'Poppy'

I've never heard of Luscious Cosmetics before but being the makeup lover I am, I was really looking forward to try a new product. This looked like a fiery red in the tube but once swatched and applied on the lips, it wasn't as intense as what I was expecting. This red is mixed with a pinkish/raspberry hue once I applied it which took me a little by surprise as it looked like a true red in the tube. This lipstick is definitely buildable as it doesn't shock you with an immense amount of pigment when you apply it. It's my least favourite in terms of formulation out of the three but a beautiful colour nonetheless.

Price: $21.74 AUD

My rating: 6/10

On the lips: Luscious Cosmetics Signature Lipstick 'Poppy'

Zoeva Luxe Cream Lipstick 'Cooling Passion'

Now this lipstick from Zoeva is absolutely stunning. I've only tried Zoeva's brushes (which I adore!!) and blushes before but seeing how much I do enjoy their products, I wasn't surprised with how much I loved this cream lipstick in 'Cooling Passion'. First of all, I love the sleek gunmetal packaging and the cap's slick magnetic closure. The formulation of the lipstick is amazing and doesn't drag or tug on your lips. It glides so easily, very smooth, creamy and moisturising. The colour is also such a rich stunning cool toned red. This shade of red is definitely the kind of shade that I would normally reach out for. Can't tell you guys enough how much I'm enjoying this formula and this crazy pigmentation. I love the slight gloss it gives too, makes for plumper lips! I need more shades from this line!!

Price: $15.80 AUD

My rating: 9/10

On the lips: Zoeva Luxe Cream Lipstick 'Cooling Passion'

Sleek Makeup True Colour Lipstick 'O.M.G!'

Last but not least, a shade of red that I normally shy away from. I rarely ever wear orangey-reds and always thought they never looked that nice on me. This lipstick proved me wrong. This shade is so so pretty and a perfect statement lip for Spring/Summer. It's Winter in Australia at the moment so I'll have to wait for a few months until the weather warms up. NOT! Remember, there are no boundaries when it comes to makeup! It's okay to rock a vampy burgundy lip during Summer and it's more than okay to wear a coral red in Winter. Be a rebel :P

Great formulation and feels super nice on the lips. Not as creamy and smooth as Zoeva's lipstick but the intensity and pigmentation is 100% there! I love how this coral-red lip can brighten up your complexion too. Definitely a colour I hope I'll be brave to wear more often!

Price: $17.78 AUD

My rating: 8/10

On the lips: Sleek Makeup True Colour Lipstick 'O.M.G!'

I currently have an exclusive discount code that Luxola have provided for my readers (I do not get any commission from the use of this code). Enter 'BLX-PORCELAIN' at checkout for 15% off your first order with Luxola (voucher code is valid until August 31st and is not applicable on non-discountable brands found on Luxola's FAQ). Not only can you purchase the lipsticks and brands I'm wearing in the above snapshots, you can also purchase from brands such as 3 Concept Eyes, Ardell, Beauty Blender, Koh Gen Do, Makeup Store, SKII, theBalm, Wet n Wild and heaps more!

What are your favourite shades of red lipsticks to wear? The takeaway from this post is don't be afraid to branch out and try a colour
you wouldn't normally wear. Just like me and the coral/orange-red
lipstick. You might be surprised to find out that you actually like it :)